Americans are abandoning department stores for one of the ugliest stores in retail
Business Insider/Hayley Peterson
The discount chain - which competes with stores like TJ Maxx and Marshalls - has opened more than 500 new stores since 2010.
It now has nearly 1,600 US locations and has reported soaring same-store sales as much of the brick-and-mortar retail industry is struggling. The chain has the potential to expand even more, according to analysts at Morgan Stanley.
What is Ross' secret? Being one of the ugliest stores in retail.
Much like warehouse chain Costco, Ross eschews the decor and frills of traditional retailers. The bare-bones philosophy allows them to pass savings of up to 60% on to customers.
Business Insider's Hayley Peterson visited Ross Stores' location in Richmond, Virginia, and was shocked at the disarray she found.
"It looked like a tornado had ripped through the shoe department," Peterson writes. "Everywhere we looked, it was a disaster."
Yelp reviewers also commented on how messy and disorganized the store was.
Business Insider/Hayley Peterson
In some stores, the fitting rooms are "dirty," the service is "horrible," and merchandise is mislabeled, ink-stained, broken, or damaged, according to an analysis of dozens of customer reviews on Yelp.
But customers will seemingly prioritize deals over organized shelves.
"I LOVE SHOPPING AT ROSS!" one customer wrote on Yelp, adding that she feels like she's "robbing the bank" when she finds deals there.
Hayley Peterson contributed reporting to this story.
- Indian smartphone market up 8%, 5G smartphones account for over 70% of shipments
- Manchester United named world’s most valuable football club! MLS dominates top 50 list - the Messi effect?
- Rahul Dravid will have to reapply if he wants to continue as head coach after June: Jay Shah
- BPCL shares rally 5% after earnings announcement
- Markets bounce back in early trade on firm global trends; buying in ITC, Reliance
- Nothing Phone (2a) blue edition launched
- JNK India IPO allotment date
- JioCinema New Plans
- Realme Narzo 70 Launched
- Apple Let Loose event
- Elon Musk Apology
- RIL cash flows
- Charlie Munger
- Feedbank IPO allotment
- Tata IPO allotment
- Most generous retirement plans
- Broadcom lays off
- Cibil Score vs Cibil Report
- Birla and Bajaj in top Richest
- Nestle Sept 2023 report
- India Equity Market